B-612

I agree that counselling psych would be a good fit for you. In addition to the subject GRE, it might be good to take some psych classes (especially stats and research methods) over the next year. 

I agree about checking out counseling psychology programs, in particular, take a look at Oklahoma University's program! A lot of the people there are doing LGBT related research (from what I gathered when I was researching schools).
Also, I think there may be terminal masters programs in divinity counseling that may be related to your interests as well. I know that Harvard has a masters in divinity counseling program that is more focused on the counseling aspect of things rather than Biblical scholarship. I think that you can choose from a wide variety of religions to focus on as well and it includes a foreign language learning requirement.

I also know that most programs require the subject test, if you do not have a background in psychology. I do agree that you will be well received but probably might need to take the subject test. 

I think your background would be well received. You may wish to look into counseling psychology programs, but also programs in community psychology.

Is anyone being bogged down by the "you're not smart enough, your GPA isn't high enough, you'll blow the GRE, what, what, what are you doing?" goblin? That's where I am at the moment. I'm reading books by my POIs so I can better cater my statement of purpose towards them but still... can't imagine who'd want little old me.

That's what a professor of mine said. He can be a bit scatterbrained at times and was a second-career scholar. He said he wasn't a good test taker, was very reserved and wasn't the typical name-dropping, self-promoting type that seems to fare well in academia, but he was a hard worker and open-minded. It's a shame that humility seems to work against you these days, but if he made it in, there's hope for all of us.

I'd give them two weeks. I heard back within the week from all POIs but one. I don't think it necessarily means that they're a no go. Our society moves at a relentless pace these days and it's easy for things to get lost in the shuffle.

I realize I'm totally clogging this forum... but I'll ask as long as you all will have me.

Is there a formula to references? Do all three need to be professors? Do all three need to come from master's level?

I ask because I was thinking of a few possibilities for a third reference:
* my undergrad Bible professor I've been close with since 2006; she could show I have a strong grasp of the Bible
* the LGBTQ center director under whom I served as chaplain for my MDiv field education, to show that my work has practical applications
* the priest under whom I've been working to show I have a strong grasp of theology, am rooted in a religious community and can write well (I edited everything he wrote)

Is anyone being bogged down by the "you're not smart enough, your GPA isn't high enough, you'll blow the GRE, what, what, what are you doing?" goblin? That's where I am at the moment. I'm reading books by my POIs so I can better cater my statement of purpose towards them but still... can't imagine who'd want little old me.

Is anyone being bogged down by the "you're not smart enough, your GPA isn't high enough, you'll blow the GRE, what, what, what are you doing?" goblin? That's where I am at the moment. I'm reading books by my POIs so I can better cater my statement of purpose towards them but still... can't imagine who'd want little old me.

Is anyone being bogged down by the "you're not smart enough, your GPA isn't high enough, you'll blow the GRE, what, what, what are you doing?" goblin? That's where I am at the moment. I'm reading books by my POIs so I can better cater my statement of purpose towards them but still... can't imagine who'd want little old me.

Hi everyone,
 
Ever since graduation (Dec. 11) life has been pretty tough. I left the city where I got my master's degree because I was encountering a lot of anti-LGBT bias during my job hunt. I thought I'd move back home, save up some money and then move elsewhere with better prospects. A year and a half later, I'm still stuck at home and in such a rut I'm losing faith I'll ever get out.
 
The only job I've found thus far is a part-time secretarial position at a church. I find myself replacing toilet paper and picking up dead birds for the woman who teaches Spanish downstairs. I attended a top-ranked, private university for a Master of Divinity degree and am in substantial debt. I'm going nuts living with my family having experienced eight years of freedom. I don't know what to do. I've developed anxiety, depression, chronic back pain as a result of the tense muscles, an alarmingly high heart-rate (I'm not obese but in fact I'm pretty slender) and my psychologist has even said she thinks I'm dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder from some violent encounters I had with some bigoted strangers. 
 
I was told that if I got into a top-ranked program I'd be able to find jobs easily. On top of that, my financial counseling was utter crap and I'm wondering how I'll ever manage to pay off this debt. 
 
I was just wondering if anyone else was struggling with a situation like this. I had a wonderful time in grad school but am not sure it was worth what came after.

Hello, all!
 
I was contacted by a friend from undergrad yesterday who wanted to get back in touch. I recently completed an M.Div. at Vanderbilt and between that any the angry, sanctimonious rants I post on Facebook about the hypocrisy within my faith (with which he agrees), he thought it could be helpful to him to reestablish communication, as he finds himself in that chaotic place between belief (of a Christian variety) and non-belief. 
 
Anyway, he asked me how I made it past what seems to be the bumping point for everyone: the Bible. He didn't know how it could be a foundation for one's faith without its inerrancy, yet he couldn't affirm its inerrancy. 
 
My own theology of the Bible is a low(er) one, mostly because I am cautious of bibliolatry. I want to recognize the limitations of human knowing, including the fact that human language is insufficient to fully capture God. However, I also want to affirm what we do know (i.e. through science) and not willfully ignore things that conflict with my sacred text while attributing it all to a "test of faith." I don't see a problem with this, but I do see the room for a slippery slope: "How can you not eventually rule out the whole thing altogether?" or "How can you not say Beethoven's 9th or Martin Luther King Jr's 'I Have a Dream Speech' were inspired by God?" I could easily say that Beethoven and MLK Jr were inspired by God, but that to me doesn't mean their works serve as the foundation of the faith.
 
My friend is a philosopher, though, where I was a religion major. He needs something more systematic than a phone call to sink his teeth into. I told him how about in my church (the Episcopal Church) we have the three-legged stool of scripture, tradition and reason that check and balance one another, and so beyond reading I encouraged him to experience the way scripture is used liturgically, etc. so that he's not leaning too hard on one leg.
 
Anyway, all this to say, can anyone recommend some good reads on theologies of the Bible? Most of what I got in divinity school came from online articles that were taken from books, but the theologians and the titles of the articles all run together in your mind when you don't have hard copies.
 
Marcus Borg's Reading the Bible Again for the First Time suits the issue at hand, but my friend is an intelligent fellow and I think Borg targets that book at a lay audience. 

Thanks for your question, Eigen. It's a master's level program but the class isn't in my area of focus and the professor isn't a regular member of my graduate department's faculty, so thankfully I am less concerned than I would normally be about that. I'm a total goober when it comes to classes where the relationship with the professor is important to me, though. I once staggered across campus to my department's building with a skyrocketing fever and the stomach flu just to turn a provide a hard copy of my paper to a professor because I thought it seemed more professional than just e-mailing it as an attachment. Wah wah waaah

Thanks for your question, Eigen. It's a master's level program but the class isn't in my area of focus and the professor isn't a regular member of my graduate department's faculty, so thankfully I am less concerned than I would normally be about that. I'm a total goober when it comes to classes where the relationship with the professor is important to me, though. I once staggered across campus to my department's building with a skyrocketing fever and the stomach flu just to turn a provide a hard copy of my paper to a professor because I thought it seemed more professional than just e-mailing it as an attachment. Wah wah waaah